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... when your on a relaxing jaunt with your sweetie... your allowed to break all the rules.... like eating 1/4lb hotdogs with all the fixins with your shoes off and feet propped up on the dash.... just cause you can...
Its a good thing...
Pray for the troops...and have a fine day ...all day long...
.. a little getaway with the the one I love... a sweet phone call from Josh... beautiful country side..and things that make me happy... It was a fine day... all day long...
..Continue to pray for the troops ...and have a fine day...all day long~
For some reason my mom & my Gram had an argument today about who was getting my vote as the next president..~ sigh~ not sure why I wasn't asked because neither one would have won the argument. With Ron Paul out of the running I'll be writing in Chuck Baldwin , the Constitution Party candidate for president.. Guess they will have to find something new to spat about!
Things seem to be coming back to normal around here. Josh was given a shell casing from his room mate's 21 gun salute ..something to be cherished...
Our family spent yesterday observing the Sabbath as exactly that...rest.. reflection.. thankfulness.. praise...
Josh is healing nicely, the phone calls are beginning to add conversations about the accident... and about Lance... Josh will be fine.. he's tough... his faith is strong...
I relaxed yesterday by playing with Perler Beads , making different types of designs and playing around with things for a swap over at Craftster . A fun mushroom swap... sound strange.. well.. yea..it is a bit strange.. but it has been great getting my creative juices turning with a new challenge...
I finally settled in to give my attention to a book I was asked to review,The Homeschooling Option , by Lisa Rivero. I am about 3/4 finished and I must say this book really is a must read for anyone considering home schooling or even those re vamping their educational path. I hope to have a full review up by Friday.. Chris and I are going on a little jaunt and I'll have some down time to be able to give the book my full attention.
Now that I have the scrap afghan I was working on finished, I can turn to other projects I have wanted to try.. I'm gathering supplies for my very first attempt at freezer paper stenciling . I'm probably the last person on the planet to give it a go but I just found out I will be an auntie again in Nov. and the babe absolutely needs some spiffy undershirts and onsies to sport..It's been awhile since our family has had a wee one to spoil and I look forward to it!
Our garden went in on Sat. morning... well, part of it before the rains hit. The tomatoes, peppers & eggplant are in... funny thing about that eggplant. Chris and I split up Sat. morning chores and he headed to Lowes while I did grocery shopping.. He saw a plant that looked cool...and had a cool name so he bought it thinking it was a type of squash.. when he was putting it in the ground he realized it was eggplant...~sigh~ guess I'll be trying out new eggplant recipes...Gosh if food prices keep rising it might be a grand source of food around here! I am sort of disappointed we didn't get the chicken coop up and stocked this year.. just too much going on... next year it will be a must do...
Chili Cheese Omletes were on the menu for the weekend.. we were blessed with a dozen fresh from the chicken eggs by a co worker of Chris . Simply make your omlette and stuff with no bean chili and shredded cheese.. Very filling ..easy... I suppose you could use chili with beans if you wanted... I never have.. that would add even more fiber...
Remember to pray for the troops... and have a fine day.. all day long...
.. . I know info has not been out there on how our citizen soldier is doing, mostly because he was having to go from point A to point B and things have to work out... not like running up the road here in the states... But I am happy to report while still in theater, he is probably safe. He has a broken finger & according to the xrays no broken bones just deep deep bruises and a bad concussion that will take a while to heal from. He has opted to stay at the base with the 1132nd and I am actually glad of that decision on his part. All the love in the world from his family can heal the emotional wounds he is battling now...and only what is left of the 1132nd can do that. They understand...I mean really understand in a way his dad and I can't...
Our hearts ache for our soldier son, and for all the 1132nd and their families... the brave wives... the brave mamas...the brave children... My ache comes out as tears.... my much more brave husband writes his heart here ... our good friend Jimmy writes about it here .
I'm not a bit brave... I just want to see him... to hear him laugh again... for the war to go away.... for Lance & WIlliams & Pickett & Stelmat & Ray to be alive again...
This week we hope to be able to meet with the other soldier in the attack... he will hopefully hit American soil soon if not already... I want to hug him too...you know... I want him to tell me something goofy my son has said or done...
We begin the count down until all the 1132nd come home... they are heroes... each one a hero....
History will remember the 1132nd MP's... their sacrifice above and beyond ...
Pray for the troops...and have a fine day... all day long...
.. tonight was the visitation for Lance. I had gone early with the Blue Star Moms . We were sitting in a small area waiting to visit the mom when the casualty officer came up to us. I introduced myself as Josh 's mom and allof a sudden, a very kind man with a cane came out of the door and stared at me, " You're Josh's mom, well come with me. You shouldn't be sitting out here like this your family... and very slowly, while whispering encouraging words to me the whole time...he led me to the casket to meet Lance.. this was Lance's dad... and soon I was looking Lance's mom in the face. All afternoon I had rehearsed 1000 words to say to this woman whose son was such an encouragement to my son... not one of those words were spoken... we just hugged and cried each other for awhile.....we really didn't need words...." We would be honored if you would eat with the family tomorrow" she said., "because your family now" They squeezed my hand and told me the comfort they had in knowing Josh was with Lance til the end....
I was told that Lance's dad was being seen by the paramedics for chest pains. half way through the visitation.. please pray for him... and the whole family as they lay their child to rest tomorrow...
Stand down Eakes...
Pray for the troops...
When my son landed at Rustimyah he was so excited that his room mate like the same things he did; kickboxing, Ultimate Fighting Championship, and playing practical jokes. I breathed a sigh of relief knowing my son had found some one to make his deployment easier.
So many times Josh and Lance would both get on the webcam and it was like watching two peas in a pod! If one made you laugh together they were a force to be reckoned with and many times I would shake my head wondering how the squad sgt dealt with those two.
As I packed Josh's Christmas box I had to tuck something in for Lance you know. They shared everything and despite the fact they both were going to get in shape so they could “compete” when they got back, I knew the goodies were appreciated. I didn't cry so much on Christmas morning missing my child knowing he had Lance there. By Christmas Lance had become family.
In March when Josh turned 22 I cried and cried that I couldn't be near my boy, but when I talked to him that day he told me he and Lance hung out with some of the guys and I knew he had had a good day
When their friends were fallen heroes in late March my heart ached but I wasn't scared for my son cause his buddy Lance was there to say something to him to get him through.
I won't forget the day Josh told me he was going to Taji... “I wasn't going to go but I don't want Eakes going by himself so I said I would go”. It was Ok he had gone to Taji... he wasn't going alone, it was he and Eakes.
The pain in their voice when the RPG hit their old hootch was more then I could handle. Josh whispered it would be OK, he and Eakes had prayed and they were going to fly down to be with the others, to remember Pickett.
How my heart stopped Friday afternoon April 18th 2008 when Josh called to tell me his humvee had been hit by an IED. I gave a prayer of thanks hearing his voice, but that changed to grief as my soldier, this grown man burst into tears and said, “ Eakes didn't make it, Mom, I was with him, I never left my man behind”. Tears flowed for this young man who had taken my green horn son under his wing to make Iraq a better place. Josh told me Lance had not left him behind he was now his guardian angel. They were brothers and always will be.
SPC Lance Eakes has a part of this mama's heart. Our home will remember him for generations. Thank you so much for sharing him with us. He is a gift we will cherish.
Lea Eaton
mom to Sgt Josh Freeman
1132nd MP
...Lance was my son's room mate in Iraq... he was the one that joked with me about being an old hippie... and lived with Josh's quirks ... he was the gunner in the humvee my son was driving when the IED hit.... as a matter of fact , Josh & Lance were joking around right before the hit....
..The Army trains them to never leave a man behind.... Josh never left his man behind... he was with Lance til the end....
...another 1132nd fallen hero... there are 5 of them now.... 17 wounded physically... a whole unit wounded emotionally.... pray for Josh... pray for Ben Parrish... pray for Lance's family. I spoke with his mom just awhile ago... one heartbroken mama to another....
.... I'll observe Blog Silence until after the funeral... comments will remain open.... they are the bravest... the 1132nd War Devils.....
I can share a little more today.... Josh is being transfered to another area for continued care and further medical tests. He seems to be well taken care of and the DOD has placed him under someone's attention and I know that person has helped him gather his things and move to a different location... you see...
... His room mate didn't make it. there will be another NC National Guard funeral within a few days. This one much harder then the rest. This time it is for the one who knew my child the best in that foreign place. The one my child faced danger with til the very end of this young man's life. My son's heart is probably more broken then his body at this point.
The other soldier in the vehicle has a some neck injury from the account we are getting however, he is able to be transported state side so that is a good sign of his condition I think.
... I received an email from a young lady whose husband pulled Josh from the wrecked humvee it was very nice to feel a connect...and I thank ed her and her husband...
I was told my child would be recommended for a purple heart.... I'm sad... I'd rather no one had to receive a purple heart....
...I just want things to be the way they use to be... I want " do overs"... I don't want to look into another mama's face because her child has come home in a casket... I don't want to see the pain in a soldiers face as they see those who have become brothers fall...
Squeeze hard those you love... add daily to those you love hard enough to squeeze...pray for the troops....
.. At approximately 2:00 pm Baghdad time our son Joshua with the 1132nd MP National Guard was driving a humvee when he was attacked by a late detonating IED. His humvee flipped several times and he sustained non life threatening injuries. He is in the base hospital . Physically he should be fine in a few days.
... There will be more updates as the DOD makes more public. There were others with him...
...Its a phone call you hate to get... Fortunately Josh himself was able to call. Hearing his voice was like the day he spoke his first word...
If you could pray for him.... and others... and the 1132nd MP's...
...there is just a small window of time in NC when the weather is cool enough for outside work...and warm enough for outside work... Today begins the "get it done int he morning so you don't sweat to death of days. I think that might be on of the reasons for square foot gardening & tire here at the farm. Nothing like trying to break through red clay to turn a decent garden.
.. Several years ago a friend who has since moved out of Granville Co., invited Chris and I over to spend time in her garden which was totally made from tires. She was able to provide for her family AND enough to give away with perhpas 25 tires in a fenced in area with gravel paths between the tires. She had a website showing the process which I can not for the life of me find. We are finally trying a few this year. I still have qualms about the process but everyone that I know who has done it has great results... One article I did find was Backwoods Home We've been subscribers to his magazine for years and I mostly trust his advice from cabin building to politics. My friend Berly also found a post our friend Rox had sent about her tire garden.
Here's the soil mix...
1 bale peat moss (6 cubic feet)
3 bags top soil (9 cubic feet)
sand (6 cubic feet)
5 gallons wood ashes
4 lbs lime
horse manure (6 cubic feet
Just mix it all together. We didn't measure the sand or horse manure.
We sort of just tossed in
what we thought was enough.
Here's the ratio of plants per tire...
tomato - 2 per tire (we put three and it was fine)
peppers - 3 per tire
peas - 2 per tire (we put about 10 plants, lol)
onions - 20 per tire
strawberries - 1 per tire (we put
two)
parsley - 2 per tire
basil & cilantro - 1 per tire (we put one of each and same thing, grew like crazy)
In between the tires, I planted the parsley, it grew like crazy in the regular ground.
..I think these proportions are just about dead on and could be used
for a square foot garden also.
..If you want to go with a square foot garden, which
we are doing this year, I think Wendy gives the
best advice. She was a CSA farmer in VT before
health and other things took her to FL. I have been
getting advice from Wendy for over 15 years and
its all been good!
..One other project we are going to try this year is growing
potatoes in a trash can.. there are several sites
all over the web here is just one explaing the easy process
..and it is with anticipation around here that
strawberry season will hit northern NC in another
week or so. We eat about a half gallon a day
between the three of us. Chris takes his over
shortbread that I simply make like a biscuit with
extra sugar. Christopher eats his straight up
or in a smoothie.. I eat mine with sugar and milk
there is always the batch I dip in chocolate
that get gobbled up around here too. A few will
make their way in to jam. I simply follow the
recipe on the sure jell box. Make sure your jars are
super clean and use new lids. Makes a great
ice cream topping too. I buy sure jell at the
grocery store.
Now one of the downsides to NC this time of year
is hte pine pollen.. I had to run out and take
a picture of my car while I was posting so you
can see what I am talking about
So much for loads of laundry flapping in the
spring breeze... the pollen is on EVERYTHING!!
Yesterday Christopher had to take Chuck the
cat outside and shake him out before we
could let him in the house. We all walk
around with gritty eyes eating spoonfuls of
Jimmy's honey trying to build up a resistance
to the stuff. Soon it wil rain( hopefully on Sun)
and wash the stuff away so we can enter into
the squelching heat phase of NC weather.
Its all part of living here though you know..
our seasons, you learn to grow fond of it.
I'm off to cook food for tomorrow. We have a barn raising
to attend and I am down for the calico beans
and peanut butter cookies. Should be fun!
..pray for the troops...and have a fine day
all day long!
